9.4

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
1,301 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #57

Oct 072022

Wrangler

  • miles
Experienced what is called "jeep death wobble" at high speeds on the highway. Lost control of steering and vehicle felt like it was coming apart. Would happen anytime I reached 60 mph and hit a bump on the road. Extremely dangerous and frightening. Jeep attempted to fix the problem with steering dampers, but now feels completely unstable when I drive. Also have an open safety recall which they cannot repair until next year when parts are available. I feel unsafe driving this vehicle and want Jeep to purchase it back without a huge loss on my part. I don't understand how a serious safety recall can be issued with no resources to address or repair the problem.

- Chesapeake, VA, USA

problem #56

Oct 262022

Wrangler 4-cyl

  • miles
My 2021 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited has 12,500 miles on it and in October 2022 I noticed that when I drove over 50 miles per hour on the freeway or hit a pot hole the car violently shakes to a point where I feel I am going to crash. I have to step on the brake slow the vehicle down to stop the shaking then I can accelerate. I made an appt to get the vehicle serviced on 11/16/22 that is when I was told the Steering Damper was faulty the dealership had to order the part with no estimated time of delivery. On 12/1/22 the steering damper was replaced. The dealership told me this can happen again. This vehicle is new I have never taken it off-roading, I have only driven it on the roads and freeways. Why would Jeep Chrysler continue to sell Jeeps knowing this issue is happening. Driving on the freeway and braking to stop the vehicle from shaking is extremely dangerous. After extensive research its called the Death Wobble. This is gross negligence from Chrysler to knowingly sell a vehicle that has a reputation of having a death wobble and putting people's lives in danger. I want to know what my options are.

- Pomona, CA, USA

problem #55

Nov 132022

Wrangler

  • miles
Since purchase of the vehicle the steering has had a "wobble" after hitting a bump (bridge transition on interstate is most common). The wobble occurs at higher speeds 60-75 mph. The wobble has gotten worse and I would now classify it as the "death wobble" that is commonly reported on the internet forums. It literally shakes the wheel (and front end) so violently that you have to slow down to 40-45 mph to make it stop. It is unsafe to have to brake this hard on a high speed road to stop the vibration of the vehicle. The vibration is violent and observable from outside the vehicle as a trailing vehicle informed me. Also, a young or inexperienced driver may not make the proper decision to address the violent wobble. I have had the vehicle inspected by a local Jeep dealer and they plan to order a new steering stabilizer (amazingly backordered with no committed delivery date). My concern is whether this is a repair or a band-aid. Will this continue to happen" This vehicle had the issue from purchase and it got extremely violent within 22,000 miles. Will I need to take it to the shop for a new stabilizer every 20,000 miles? Would like some facts on what the root cause is and how the stabilizer will permanently fix the issue. Also, why is this not a recall"

- Waynesboro, PA, USA

problem #54

Nov 292022

Wrangler 6-cyl

  • miles
This Jeep is unsafe. The jeep has a problem when you are driving 70 miles per hour on the highway. If you go over a bridge with road bumps or hit a pothole, the Jeep goes into an uncontrollable wobble. I have to slow down to about 40 miles per hour to get the Jeep to stabilize. Suddenly needing to slow down because the jeep feels like it will shake itself apart is incredibly dangerous. We tried to have it fixed at a dealer in Vermont and they said it was fixed but it isn't. I took it to the dealer in Albany NY today where we bought the Jeep and it happened again on the way. They tell me that it might take up to 2 months to get a part - a steering dampener - to fix the problem. This car is unsafe. How can there not be a recall on this issue?

- Valatie, NY, USA

problem #53

Nov 142022

Wrangler

  • miles
This is the best explanation I can give you. "The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is looking into complaints about the dreaded -€œdeath wobble-€ in the steering system that some drivers have reported. In short, the steering wheel begins to shake quite badly after hitting a bump at higher speeds. The shaking goes away once the Jeep slows down, but it can be a rather frightening situation for drivers -€" especially on a busy highway." My Jeep had the "Death Wobble" issue fixed almost a year ago. Right now it is back at the dealership for the 2nd time for the exact same issue. Their service department said it's rare that it occurs a second time but I do not believe them. When picking up my loaner vehicle at Enterprise Rent a Car the representative asked what issue I was having with my Jeep and she replied we are hearing that a lot of people are having that same issue right now. It happened 3 times on a recent trip to Tucson and 2 times on the way back. This time they are replacing the steering damper (again) front shocks and several other parts. It is still under factory warranty.

- Chandler, AZ, USA

problem #52

Oct 112022

Wrangler

  • miles
Vehicle steering is very sloppy and vague. Vehicle wanders on road, wind blows car out of lane, steering wheel has 5 inches of free play before tires are turned. At 55 mph vehicle went over road imperfection and I lost control of steering for a second - the car seemed to jump in the air.

- Gardiner, NY, USA

problem #51

Aug 082021

Wrangler

  • miles
Problem is the steering on my 2021 Jeep Wrangler Sport 4X4. Received the vehicle in August 2021 and immediately noticed a problem with its steering. After several visits to the dealership I was told they knew what was wrong that it was something about steering calibration. but they had no way to correct the problem because Jeep had not provided a mechanism for a fix. The best I can describe the steering problem is that there seems to be excessive steering wheel play, and wandering/drifting of the vehicle while driving requiring constant left to right and then right to left steering to keep the vehicle going straight in its traffic lane. The vehicle only has 3,000 miles driven. I am hesitant to drive on any expressway because of the unstable steering.

- Ball Ground, GA, USA

problem #50

Aug 162019

Wrangler

  • miles
This vehicle was purchased new. From day one there has been concern with the steering on the Wrangler. There is excessive play in the steering of about one inch. As a result the vehicle wanders making it difficult to control. This behavior is most notable at speeds between 40 to 70 mph. Complaint has been made to dealership two times. First visit they indicated no trouble found. Second visit they said the behavior is normal. Bottom line; driving this vehicle is a safety risk.

- Alva, FL, USA

problem #49

Aug 092022

Wrangler

  • miles
I have just over 27k miles on my jeep. It is a family vehicle and stays on road only. I noticed this last weekend that it is starting to suffer from the classic Jeep "death wobble" when driving on the highway under certain circumstances. Classic "higher speed" "possibly turn on a highway" and maybe the bumps of a bad road or a bridge transition and the front end shimmy's nearly uncontrollably. Was on the way to the dealership to get an oil change already. Asked them about it, he said it'd be nearly a month to get it diagnosed. Did some research, apparently this is an ongoing issue that is getting reported to Chrysler and the NHTSA already with possible "fixes" being replacement dampeners or a new steering box. I don't know what Chrysler will do at this time as the diagnosis date is in the future but... a replacement dampener seems to only bandaid the issue. The real issue is some other fault that wears the dampener down early. Replacing it or upgrading it only hides the fault. I believe they are making progress with the idea that the aluminum steering box stretches and needs to be steel but can't say 100%. What I do know is it's scary as hell when it happens and given that the jeep is already prone to a short wheelbase and higher center of gravity, any high speed steering uncontrollability should be considered critical and not "slowly looked at".

- Trimble, MO, USA

problem #48

Jul 042022

Wrangler

  • miles
Front End Shakes Very Bad And Gets Worse The Faster You Drive UNKNOWN

- French Camp, CA, USA

problem #47

Jun 272022

Wrangler

  • miles
I am now trying, for the third time, to have Jeep dealership resolve a classic symptom of "The Death Wobble" that has manifested for the last year with our under 20,000 mile vehicle. Two hours ago, I encounter a sever episode of a recurring issue with my 2021 Jeep. At speeds above 50mph, the Jeep's front-end will begin to shake violently after crossing the leading edge of a a bridge on the Florida Turnpike. The oscillations which rotate the steering wheel can become violent and will not smooth out for up to a quarter mile. Two dealers have replace steering dampeners and more recently front shocks. The replaced shocks seemed to work but now, less than three two months late, the Death Wobble is back and worse. At the moment of wobbling, the Jeep is not safe. It would be even more dangerous for folks who may be on snow and ice. I have been driving for over 50 years and am also a very good mechanic. My 2021 is the first year of the Hybrid and perhaps the front-end geometry is at issue.

- Coral Gables, FL, USA

problem #46

Jun 152022

Wrangler

  • miles
mY jEEP WRANGLER HAS BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT A TOTAL OF 4 TIMES FOR SEVERE SHAKING PROBLEMS WITH THE STEERING WHEEL COMPONENT MY CAR SHAKES UNCONTROLLABLY WHEN the car reaches or goes OVER 40 MILES AN HOUR. The whole vehicle shakes including tires and wheels, it has gotten to the point where shaking will not stop at all unless I bring the car to a complete stop. they have made zero attempts to diagnose the car the service department does not even test drive the vehicle at all the miles in when taken to the dealership are the same miles out when I pick up the car I'm terrified I'm going to eventually get into an accident I have no other choice but to drive the car as is my only means of transportation. The fourth repair didn't happen until 6.13.2022 I waited on a part for three months. the part was ordered back on 3.22.2022

- Lubbock, TX, USA

problem #45

May 292022

Wrangler

  • miles
Car had 7,000 miles when suddenly began a very bad wobble after driving over bumps such as expansion joints at bridges or transitions to change in pavement. Car has begun to drift very badly making it more difficult to continue a straight path. Car wobbles on most road that are not smooth.

- Brawley , CA, USA

problem #44

May 202022

Wrangler

  • miles
Driving at approximately 50 MPH, I lost power steering and the indicator/warning lights on my dash, including ABS, were all lighting up or seemingly resetting. I was able to limp it home when I regained power steering about 20 feet from the driveway. So at the moment, it's not possible to observe the issue. Loss of power steering at that speed to a less experienced driver than myself, such as one of my children could have proven catastrophic. I am currently having the vehicle towed to the dealership. There was no prior indicator or warning before the incident occurred. ~ I did a quick search on what the problem could be and found this video on youtube (not mine) which shows almost exactly what happened to my vehicle... https://youtu.be/Sewnurqrzq4 (I know clicking links isn't always allowed, so what I searched youtube for was "2021 jl loss of power steering and all warning lights on" and the video was the first result uploaded by a user by the name of Robert Ballard. The video name is "2018 Jeep JL Unlimited Rubicon Electrical Issues" and was uploaded Jun 25, 2019. )

- Bristol, RI, USA

problem #43

Nov 262021

Wrangler

  • miles
1. Road bumps on interstates and highways causing severe death wobble. Vehicle practically uncontrollable until coming to almost complete stop. 2. Inspection found steering stabilizer to not be correctly dampening steering linkages from road bumps or road variations at moderate to high speeds. Manufacturer has had this problem for 3 years and vehicles keep coming from the factory with the wrong bolt installed. 3. This problem almost killed my family while on the Interstate.

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #42

Mar 302022

Wrangler

  • miles
The exact cause on my vehicle is currently unknown, but this is definitely a suspension & steering related issue. There are numerous previous reports of what I have had occur to me "death wobble" multiple times now in Jeep Wrangler forums and YouTube online. We can reproduce with video of the issue. The Jeep forums indicate that it is usually suspension/trackbar/control bar/bushing/or improperly tightened bolts on these suspension areas. I have taken to two different dealerships within a two week period who have inspected these components and not found anything abnormal. The problem occurs when driving at speeds between 45 and 70 mph and driving over a small bump, bridge transition, expansion joint. The entire vehicle begins to shakes violently, including the steering wheel. You can only recover by pulling over to side of road to complete stop. This is extremely dangerous in construction zones, rush hour/high traffic situation. The vehicle has been inspected by two separate Jeep dealerships. Both were aware of the problem being experienced occurring on other Jeep Wranglers, known as "death wobble". Neither dealership found a problem in their inspection. The first dealership could not reproduce on their road test. After getting car back, we drove approx. 30miles on highway and the problem occurred two times in that distance, both times over bridge transitions. We then took to second dealership. The second dealership said they did feel something in the steering, but nothing violent or unsafe during their road test. They are ordering a steering dampener replacement part, but is on back order for 2wks+. There are no warnings or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. My wife and I first started to experience a steering bump at around 20k miles (a couple thousand miles after purchase).

- Raleigh, NC, USA

problem #41

Apr 012022

Wrangler

  • miles
Vehicle wobbles and is difficult to steer on interstate.

- Brooksville, FL, USA

problem #40

Feb 282022

Wrangler

  • miles
I was driving my car last night and it it just stopped on the 15 fwy, while everyone was driving 70 MPH. This car will kill me or kill others!!!! It-€™s unsafe!!!

- Corona, CA, USA

problem #39

Feb 192022

Wrangler

  • 17,100 miles
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the steering wheel began to forcefully shake and the contact lost control of the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to park on the side of the road and turn off the vehicle. The contact stated she was able to restart the vehicle and drive to her destination. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the steering damper to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 17,100.

- Dublin, OH, USA

problem #38

Feb 102022

Wrangler

  • miles
Steering has play in the wheel. Dealer says it-€™s a normal thing in the Jeep. At high speeds on the freeway you can move the wheel back and forth about 3-4 inches. The 2021 already has the steel steering box as opposed to the aluminum.

- Centennial, CO, USA

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